Michigan State's Draymond Green promises to play Saturday against Michigan

EAST LANSING – Draymond Green
limped out of Breslin Center on Thursday afternoon, an XXXL hooded
sweatshirt pulled far over his head, hands thrust into the pockets of
his Michigan State basketball letter jacket, while his teammates
practiced inside.

Green sprained his left ankle
early in the Spartans' victory over Iowa the night before, although
his practice absence was because of a class commitment, not the
injury. He spent morning and evening getting ice and electric
stimulation treatments, with more in store today.

There seems little doubt of that
after Green came back and played brilliantly in limited minutes
against the Hawkeyes, though there is much more at stake Saturday at
Crisler Arena in Ann Arbor, where MSU and Michigan play the 167th
renewal of a basketball rivalry which the Wolverines lead, 92-74.

Green's brief absence after
spraining the ankle on his own three-point play, to give MSU a 5-2
lead, coincided with Iowa's best scoring run, which quickly was
reversed after he reentered with the Spartans trailing 14-10.

Head coach Tom Izzo noted that
Green's return made Spartans star Kalin Lucas “more comfortable”
because of the way the two play off each other offensively, using
screen and rolls, or screen and slips, to create mid-range jumpers
and penetration opportunities for Lucas, and pick-and-pop and post
distribution opportunities for Green.

“Having Draymond is big because
me and him like to run that two-man game a lot,” Lucas said.

Lucas, MSU's leading scorer, said
he has no doubt what the team leader in rebounding and assists will
do.

“He's definitely going to play,”
Lucas said.

All parties seem to agree on that
after Green had 12 points, eight rebounds and five assists in just 16
minutes against Iowa, almost all of it after the early injury. His
playing time was reduced not only because of his time missed after
the ankle sprain, but also by picking up his fourth foul early in the
second half, and because of the one-sided nature of the 85-66 game.

Still, Green undoubtedly was going
to feel more soreness in the days after the game than immediately
after the injury, and his absence in preparation for Michigan
continued a season-long theme in which the Spartans rarely have had
all their players healthy for practices.

“It's hard to get timing down on
things when you don't have key people in practice,” Izzo said.
“And that's just the way it's been.”